[quote name='Truckman' date='01 January 2010 - 11:57 PM' timestamp='1262407049' post='355653']
Most if not all Crowns used aerial ladders supplied by Maxim. They may have been a few exceptions.
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I believe the only aerial not provided by Maxim was on an aerial which was purchased by Reno, NV and it was a Hahn FireSpire. Rumor is there were issues with that ladder, and the truck was eventually scrapped. In fact, Redondo Beach, CA ordered what would have been the only Crown Wide Body TDA, but because it was ordered so close to the end of Firecoach production, Crown was not able to provide a cab in time, and therefore a Maxim cab was used. Here's the link to a photo on the Crown Is King site.
[quote name='marco17' date='01 January 2010 - 10:59 PM' timestamp='1262407154' post='355654']
No, Crown dissolved the Firecoach Division when it was deemed not profitable. Ownership of Crown changed multiple times in the 80's. Crown supplied Van Pelt with 5 chassis'/cabs and they became the Crowns that were badged both Crown/Van Pelts or like the final Santa Monica pumper, simply a Van Pelt. There were a couple more attempts to revive Crown, lastly in 1992, all of which failed. Crown's were/are known for their great lasting power and quality with both their fire trucks and buses. To some extent, some consider that part of what led to the demise of the company. Because their products lasted so long, there were large gaps between purchases, even though they had a very loyal following. Many of the last Crowns that have recently been removed from service with LACoFD were auctioned off with over 200k miles on them and were 30 years old. There are still a lot of Crowns in front-line service out west with either small volunteer departments, or in Mexico. Also, Crowns were not cheap trucks in their day... you paid for the quality and were rewarded with the longevity. However, as financial concerns started in CA and many departments were required to go to bid, there were times when Crown was outbid by competitors and even their staple departments like LA City and LACoFD were forced to purchase other trucks. That led to the Ward LaFrances being purchased in the early 70s [Like the 2nd E-51] and then American LaFrance pumpers in 1980-81. Crown only sold 1 truck directly to LACoFD after the 76-77 models were delivered. LA City received only 1 wide body Crown...a Telesqurt, which they ultimately rejected for some reason, and it was later sold to Torrance, CA. Probably more info than you were looking for... but I can talk Crowns forever. <img src='http://www.firepics.net/groupboards/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' />
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I don't think the Crown price was too high. Their prices were actually very competitive. I think it was more that Crown wan't making enough money building fire trucks and they were at the point where they were no longer interested in bidding fire apparatus. As an example of prices the LA City FD paid for "Triples" during the 70s the 1976 Wards were much higher priced than the 1973 Crowns. Here is an example of some of the LA City purchase prices for triples during the 70s:
01-02-2010, 01:38 AM (This post was last modified: 01-02-2010, 11:53 AM by marco17.)
[quote name='firebuff55407' date='02 January 2010 - 12:50 AM' timestamp='1262410209' post='355697']
I don't think the Crown price was too high. Their prices were actually very competitive. I think it was more that Crown wan't making enough money building fire trucks and they were at the point where they were no longer interested in bidding fire apparatus. As an example of prices the LA City FD paid for "Triples" during the 70s the 1976 Wards were much higher priced than the 1973 Crowns. Here is an example of some of the LA City purchase prices for triples during the 70s:
Thanks Steve... there are some myths out there, and the price issue may be one of them, though i have heard that from multiple Crown sources over the years and from some old Crown people from interviews where they admitted that they were often not the cheapest. I think it may have been one factor, certainly not the only or main. At that time [late 70's early 80's] they changed ownership and the direction of the company may have changed. I would doubt if they were no longer interested in the fire truck business, they would have spent the time and money to update and improve their rigs by introducing the wide body, but you never know.
arade/Event Rig, Redlands, CA
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